NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer advised all sides to "lower the volume" of rhetoric over differences between Russia and the West over issues including missile defense and the future of Serbia's Kosovo province.
Putin has said Russia would return to its Cold War stance of targeting its missiles at sites in Europe if Washington goes ahead with a plan -- backed by NATO -- to station parts of a missile defense shield near Russia's Western borders.
"The NATO-Russia relationship is one of partnership, and in the framework of the partnership these remarks about targeting missiles do not fit, and they do not have a place in these discussions," de Hoop Scheffer told a news conference.
"I do think that in this already fairly complicated discussion it is advisable to lower the volume a bit of the public comments made by the one or the other."
"As it is with your iPod, if you put the volume too high it will in the long run damage your ears ... There is no reason to speak with megaphones," he said.
The NATO chief stressed though that this warning did not apply to his Kremlin meeting with Putin, which he said was frank and constructive.
On Kosovo, de Hoop Scheffer said he had appealed to Putin to allow a vote on the province's future in the United Nations Security Council "as soon as possible."
Russia, which holds a veto in the Council, opposes a Western-backed proposal to set Kosovo on the path to independence from Serbia and has urged other members of the council to delay a vote on the issue.
Labels: Kosova
For best video experience, fast broadband internet connection and good quality speakers or headphones are recommended. If you cannot see video, you may need to install the latest macromedia flash player plugin that you can get free from www.macromedia.com or www.adobe.com
